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A valve component for a faucet includes a substrate, a first layer of material provided above the substrate in an amount sufficient to improve abrasion resistance of the substrate, and a second layer of material provided above the first layer of material. The second layer of material includes amorph

A valve component for a faucet includes a substrate, a first layer of material provided above the substrate in an amount sufficient to improve abrasion resistance of the substrate, and a second layer of material provided above the first layer of material. The second layer of material includes amorphous diamond having sp3 bonding of at least about 40%, a hardness of at least about 45 GPa, and an elastic modulus of at least about 400 GPa.

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What is claimed is: 1. A valve component for a faucet comprising: a substrate; a first layer of material provided above the substrate in an amount sufficient to improve abrasion resistance of the substrate; and a second layer of material provided above the first layer of material, the second layer

What is claimed is: 1. A valve component for a faucet comprising: a substrate; a first layer of material provided above the substrate in an amount sufficient to improve abrasion resistance of the substrate; and a second layer of material provided above the first layer of material, the second layer of material comprising amorphous diamond having sp3 bonding of at least about 40%, a hardness of at least about 45 GPa, and an elastic modulus of at least about 400 GPa. 2. The valve component of claim 1, wherein the second layer of material has a coefficient of friction that is lower than that of diamond-like carbon. 3. The valve component of claim 1, wherein the second layer of material has a hardness that is higher than that of diamond-like carbon. 4. The valve component of claim 1, wherein the second layer of material consists essentially of carbon. 5. The valve component of claim 1, wherein the first layer of material comprises diamond-like carbon, the diamond-like carbon having a hardness less than that of amorphous diamond. 6. The valve component of claim 1, wherein the first layer of material comprises chromium nitride. 7. The valve component of claim 1, wherein the first layer of material comprises a compound of at least one of chromium, titanium, tungsten, and zirconium, the compound comprising one of a nitride, a carbide, an oxide, and a carbo-nitride. 8. The valve component of claim 1, wherein the first layer of material comprises a plurality of superlattice layers. 9. The valve component of claim 1, wherein the first layer of material has a hardness that is greater than that of the substrate. 10. The valve component of claim 1, wherein the substrate comprises a metal selected from the group consisting of stainless steel, aluminum, brass, titanium and zirconium. 11. The valve component of claim 1, wherein the substrate comprises a material selected from the group consisting of a glass, a cermet, a glass containing material, a polymeric material and a composite material. 12. The valve component of claim 1, wherein the second layer of material comprises a plurality of layers of different phases of diamond, wherein at least one of the plurality of layers comprises amorphous diamond. 13. The valve component of claim 1, wherein the second layer of material has a thickness less than about 10 microns. 14. The valve component of claim 13, wherein the first layer of material has a thickness of between approximately 500 nanometers and 6 microns. 15. The valve component of claim 1, wherein the first layer of material includes a dopant of at least one of nitrogen and a metal. 16. The valve component of claim 1, further comprising an adhesion-promoting layer provided between the first and second layers of material. 17. The valve component of claim 16, wherein the adhesion-promoting layer comprises at least one material selected from the group consisting of chromium, titanium, tungsten, and silicon. 18. A valve component for a faucet comprising: a substrate; a first layer of material provided above the substrate in an amount sufficient to improve abrasion resistance of the substrate, the first layer of material having a hardness greater than that of the substrate; and a second layer of material provided above the first layer of material, the second layer of material comprising amorphous diamond having sp3 bonding of at least about 40%, a hardness of at least about 45 GPa, and an elastic modulus of at least about 400 GPa; wherein the second layer of material has a coefficient of friction that is lower than that of diamond-like carbon and a hardness that is higher than that of diamond-like carbon. 19. The valve component of claim 18, wherein the second layer of material consists essentially of carbon. 20. The valve component of claim 18, wherein the first layer of material comprises at least one material selected from the group consisting of diamond-like carbon and chromium nitride. 21. The valve component of claim 18, wherein the first layer of material comprises a compound of at least one of chromium, titanium, tungsten, and zirconium, the compound comprising one of a nitride, a carbide, an oxide, and a carbo-nitride. 22. The valve component of claim 18, wherein the first layer of material comprises a plurality of superlattice layers. 23. The valve component of claim 18, wherein the substrate comprises a material selected from the group consisting of stainless steel, aluminum, brass, titanium, zirconium, a glass, a cermet, a glass containing material, a polymeric material, and a composite material. 24. The valve component of claim 18, wherein the second layer of material comprises a plurality of layers of different phases of diamond, wherein at least one of the plurality of layers comprises amorphous diamond. 25. The valve component of claim 18, wherein the second layer of material has a thickness less than about 10 microns and the first layer of material has a thickness of between approximately 500 nanometers and 6 microns. 26. The valve component of claim 18, wherein the first layer of material includes a dopant of at least one of nitrogen and a metal. 27. The valve component of claim 18, further comprising an adhesion-promoting layer provided between the first and second layers of material. 28. The valve component of claim 27, wherein the adhesion-promoting layer comprises at least one material selected from the group consisting of chromium, titanium, tungsten, and silicon.